Hannibal Lecter TV Series in the Works

Are you ready for a TV series about Hannibal Lecter? Okay, so it's hard not to wince at the sound of it – but throwing Bryan Fuller into the mix certainly makes things more interesting.

Deadline is reporting the news about the Lecter series, which will be called Hannibal. But rather than being based on the book (or film) of that name, which took place after the events of The Silence of the Lambs, this will be a prequel, about a younger Lecter, who has established himself as a renown psychiatrist. The focus would be on the early relationship between Lecter and Will Graham, an FBI agent "haunted by his ability to empathize with serial killers." Of course little does he know that empathy is working in overdrive with Lecter himself… Fans of the Hannibal Lecter books and/or films will recognize Graham as the main character in Red Dragon – the FBI agent destined to eventually discover Lecter's secret and capture him (Graham was played by William Peterson in Manhunter and Edward Norton in Red Dragon).

In the book Red Dragon, Graham only sought Lecter's help on one particular case, before realizing the truth about him – but I'm assuming an ongoing TV show would have Graham regularly consulting with Lecter on different cases.

Bleah!

French film studio Gaumont is behind Hannibal, which is one of the first projects they are developing with their new US-based TV studio.

Fuller will write and executive produce the project. Fuller's background with series he created, like Pushing Daisies, Wonderfalls and Dead Like Me, has shown his skill for mixing quirky and macabre elements. He also was a writer for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager, and wrote for the first (as in The Good) season of Heroes, returning briefly at the end of Season 3.

Fuller has also been developing a new take on The Munsters. His talent has me intrigued by what he might do with Hannibal, though I am amused by the idea of the most whimsical version of the famous cannibal/serial killer ever. Martha De Laurentiis, who produced the films Hannibal, Red Dragon and Hannibal Rising (itself a prequel about an even younger Lecter) will also executive produce.

Deadline notes that Gaumont are also developing Madame Tussaud, a six-hour miniseries written by The Tudors creator Michael Hirst.